This question has been asked ever since the American Kennel Club (AKC) began registering the Deutsch drahthaar as a German wirehaired pointer (GWP) in the later 1950's. In my opinion, I believe the question can be examined from two different perspectives: genetically and from a breeder’s viewpoint. As a breeder of German registered Deutsch drahthaars, I would like to take this opportunity to provide my thoughts on why the Deutsch drahthaar and the GWP are two distinct breeds within the canine world. I will point out what I consider to be significant differences between the two concerning their respective registries and breed standards. It is not my intent to make any value judgments. I am just providing my observations and opinions.

I produce Deutsch drahthaars under the German registered kennel name of vom Wildflugel Kennel. I have made a conscience decision to follow a strict set of breeding and testing regulations. My dogs are registered as Deutsch drahthaars. This is what appears on the registration paper (Ahnentafel) and how I advertise them. Other individuals have decided that the VDD organization is not for them and chose to follow a different path. They breed GWP and register their dogs with either the AKC, North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA), or Field Stud Dog Book (FSDB). I believe the VDD breeding and testing regulations have taken the drahthaar in a different direction from the GWP.

Many GWP breeders state that if you trace a GWP’s pedigree back far enough you will find German registered Deutsch drahthaars. I would venture to guess that DNA testing would show no genetic differences between VDD registered drahthaars and GWP produced from well-known U.S. kennels. To my knowledge there is no way to genetically differentiate between GWP and drahthaars, so in the absence of any scientific data I will concede that there is no genetic difference between the two. Given this I feel the issue should be looked at from the breeder’s point of view.

The versatile hunting dog concept was first envisioned by the German hunter during the early 1800's. The Deutsch drahthaar was developed by Germans who wanted a pointer, a retriever that worked equally well on land and in the water, a tracker, a flusher, and a dog aggressive enough to bring down wounded game. The Deutsch drahthaar was mentally and physically tough, but calm mannered to protect a family and their property. These breeders were idealists who believed that by selecting the best brood stock from stichelhaar, pudelpointer, griffon, and Deutsch kurzhaar breeders, the  progeny produced would have to be the best. 

The Verein Deutsch Drahthaar, e.V. (VDD) breeding organization was established in 1902 by a handful of devoted and determined breeders who had complete faith in their objective. Under the leadership of Alex Lauff, the first president of the VDD (who remained in office for more than twenty years) the drahthaar movement continued to grow. As the VDD grew and became stronger, the breeding program was developed and supervised. The breeding regulations were rigid and demanding.

At this same time Sigismund Freiherr vom Zedlitz und Neukirch, better known as Hegewald, was becoming involved with drahthaars. Hegewald is known as the father of the German utility hunting dog performance breeding test. He wrote many books and articles on the value and use of a utility hunting dog. His works became the foundation of the hunting dog movement in Germany. Hegewald paved the way for the test structure that is still used today in Germany and the VDD. The first HZP (fall breed test) was conducted in 1920 and was initiated exclusively through Hegewald’s efforts. Unfortunately, versatile hunting dog testing in Germany was halted from 1940 through 1949 due to World War II.

The Jagdgebrauchshund-Verband e.V. (JGHV) is the umbrella organization in Germany for all versatile hunting dogs. It provides the test regulations, authorizes the judges, and maintains the test records for member breed clubs, including VDD.

 So as you can see the testing and breed regulations go back a long way and are an integral part of making the VDD drahthaar what it is today. In the early 1970's a subgroup of the VDD known as Group North America (VDD-GNA) was established in the United States. This group of dedicated breeders conform to the strict VDD breed standards and testing program that was developed by the parent organization in Germany.

Deutsch drahthaars are required to meet these strict formal breed standards before they can be certified for breeding purposes. These standards include coat, conformation, field performance, and an evaluation of gun sensitivity in the field and in the water. There have been minor adjustments to the breeding and testing regulations over the history of the drahthaar, but they are basically the same today as those developed in the early 1900's. Since the turn of the century the drahthaar breed has been selectively bred with the specific aim of obtaining an assertive and efficient working rough-coated German versatile gundog. 

The AKC is the all-breed registry for purebred dogs in the United States and the governing body for AKC-sponsored dog events, i.e. dog shows, field trials, hunts tests, etc. The GWPCA sets the breed standard for the GWP in the United States.  The only requirement an AKC GWP must meet in order to be used for breeding is that each parent be a purebred representative of the breed and either be registered with the AKC or a recognized import from a foreign registry. While the AKC and GWPCA encourage and promote good breeding practices, there are no disqualifying faults that would prevent an AKC German wirehaired pointer from being bred and registered. Neither of these two organizations has the authority to remove any dog from a breeding program, it is up to the breeders and it is strictly voluntary. On the other hand, the VDD will not certify any drahthaar for breeding purposes that has a hereditary fault, i.e. underbite, overbite, missing incisors, fangs, or molars, missing or anomalies in the male sex organs, natural bobbed or crooked tail, light nose, glass eyes, etc., or that is not mentally or physically sound.

Many individuals trial their GWP in NSTRA, NAVHDA, and/or AKC sponsored events, they do so voluntarily. Some of these same GWP also compete in bench shows. While this information can and is used by many AKC breeders to develop quality breeding programs, it is my opinion that many breeders have absolutely no testing data on their brood stock or offspring. Furthermore, many breeders are not familiar with the GWP breed standards to objectively evaluate their dogs’ coat and conformation. Often subjective breeding decisions are made based on hunting ability of the parents alone, sometimes at the expense of conformation and coat. As previously stated, the VDD requires drahthaars to successfully pass a field performance evaluation, gun sensitivity tests in the field and in the water, and pass a coat and conformation evaluation prior to being used for breeding.

The Federation Cynologique Internationale (FCI) is the World Canine Organization which includes 80 members.  The FCI recognizes 339 canine breeds, each breed is owned by one member country and that owner country writes the standard for the breed. Germany is the owner country for the Deutsch drahthaar and the VDD writes and maintains the breed standards.   

The coat lengths on Deutsch drahthaars are shorter and more consistent than on their GWP counterparts. The book titled German Wirehaired Pointers by Compere contains pictures of German wirehaired pointers with coat lengths in excess of 7 cm.

The VDD registers three coat colors: braunschimmel (brown and white roan), braun (solid brown with or without white on the chest), and schwarzschimmel (black and white roan). Any other color is not permitted. The GWP breed standards list liver and white in combination with ticking and solid liver. Any black in the coat is to be severely penalized. The AKC permits white coated dogs with minimal liver on the body while this color does not appear within the Deutsch drahthaar breed. Shwarzschimmel dogs cannot compete in AKC breed shows, although they are permitted to compete in obedience, fun trials, agility trials, etc. Schwarzschimmel colored coats account for approximately 14 percent of the VDD registered drahthaars.

There are several phenotypical (physical) differences between the Deutsch drahthaars and GWP. In  essence, a VDD registered Deutsch drahthaar import can be registered with the AKC. However, an AKC registered GWP cannot be registered with the VDD.

In summary, while from a genetic standpoint, GWP and drahthaars are the same, I strongly believe that when the AKC began registering drahthaars as GWP they became two different distinct breeds. American GWP breeders no longer follow the rigid testing and breed certification program, comply with the strict VDD breeding regulations, or produce drahthaars that meet the original breed standards as developed by the founding organization. U.S. breeders have "Americanized" the GWP for bench and field purposes. One only needs to look at the breed standards and physical specimens of GWP and Deutsch drahthaars to see these differences.